Religion
is important to some people and not important to others, but to my
great delight, generally, it is increasingly less important and its
fall is dramatic. The recent poll by the Pew Research Center shows
that out of 108 countries involved in the study, Poles -
particularly the young ones –lose their faith faster than any
other nation. Few consider religion as the source of values or hope for the afterlife; even fewer believe it to be the path to the so-called salvation. .

Many
atheists maintain that the importance of religion is mainly negative,
that it is the main source of evil, the direst threat to reason, freedom and other humanist values. Perhaps, but those who remember
communist Poland and those who simply learn history and politics –
are aware that there are many irrational beliefs and authoritarian
ideologies that pose threats of similar gravity. At present,
particularly troubling is the rebirth of fascism, so visible in
Poland. Yes! Neo-fascists are often supported by the clergy and they
emphasize their affinity with Catholicism but the creator of this
ideology was – I hate to admit - a militant atheist and in some
countries, particularly in Germany, neo-fascists mostly declare
themselves as pagans.

The ongoing decline of religion and the rebirth of authoritarian ideologies give rise to a new question: is this new type of near-fascist Catholicism really a religion or rather the
the post-religious ideology that justifies or attempts to justify
ultra-conservative and authoritarian policies? In Poland, just nine
per cent of people declare that their faith is deep and only three
per cent believe so strongly that they are not afraid of death - they
say! At the same time, about half of Poles refer to Catholic
teachings to justify their political choices but I’ve never
heard anyone invoking religion to explain his or her decisions in
other walks of life. I am not saying that such people do not exist
but the number of those for whom religion is generally important is
very low, especially among youth. According to the PRC study, only 16
per cent of young people in Poland declare that religion is important
to them and that includes those who admit it mostly for political
reasons.

So,
generally speaking, it seems that today’s religion is really no
more than political ideology – often a fervent near-fascism –
still a serious problem, but of a new kind, as other forms of fascism
or authoritarianism.

This
is certainly good news to humanists but it is also a new challenge,
especially that this post-catholic near-fascism is not the only
harmful, increasingly more influential ideology. For example, in
today’s Poland, it is post-modern left, mostly openly
atheistic, that seems to be the most bitter enemy of science and
freedom of inquiry. For instance, they refuse to publish articles
claiming that there is no contradiction between feminism and
evolution. The same articles are welcome by some liberal Catholic
editors.

Similarly
foolish and authoritarian are some forms of identity politics that
reject the idea that people from different ethnic, gender or sexual
orientation groups can share values and ideas and live together. If
you are a man you are not supposed or even permitted to say anything
about women, if you are straight, you are not allowed to speak and
write about gays and so on. Religion is on the decline or perhaps
dying altogether but the number and gravity of problems we face is
not lesser at all; the need for a strong and sophisticated secular
humanism is as fundamental as it has always been.